LVIP files subdivision plan

Nicole RadzievichOf The Morning Call

In order to fast-track the project for two prospective tenants, the Lehigh Valley Industrial Park has broken down its future 265-acre industrial park at the old Bethlehem Steel plant into phases and hopes to get final plan approval for the first phase by February.

The four-lot subdivision plans for LVIP VII, filed Tuesday at Bethlehem City Hall, show a 32.5-acre lot and another 21.9-acre lot on the tract north of Route 412, between Daly Avenue and Shimersville Road.

''We have interest in those lots, but we don't know at this point if [the deals] are going to come to fruition,'' said Kerry Wrobel, LVIP president. ''We would like approved plans so we can tell [the prospective tenants] where the utilities will go, and we can continue the discussions.''

The submission kick-starts an effort to get the old Steel land back on the tax rolls. The LVIP project is part of a larger one planned for about 1,600 acres of vacant Steel land, dubbed Bethlehem Commerce Center, that's now owned by International Steel Group of Cleveland.

LVIP plans to develop more land than indicated on the 265-acre subdivision, but Wrobel declined to say how much. He plans to issue a formal announcement shortly after the new year.

In the meantime, city planners will be reviewing the current proposal on the 265-acre tract north of Route 412. In addition to the lots for the prospective tenants, LVIP partitioned off two more lots  79 and 96 acres respectively. Those two lots will probably be broken down into even smaller lots sometime in the spring.

''When this is all is said and done, the project will be broken down into 32 lots,'' Wrobel said.

The lots range in size from 4 to 32 acres, according to the sketch plans that the Planning Commission reviewed earlier this month.

Bigger lots on the northern side of the so-called Saucon tract are close to rail lines, making the lots attractive for distribution uses, said planning director Darlene Heller.

Smaller lots along the highway, which will be the most visible part of the first phase of development, will be high-end flexible office space that could possibly include commercial space such as a deli, Wrobel said.

According to the subdivision submission, Phase 1 would begin construction within the next year. The second phase of 121 acres would be built over several years and be 50 percent built by 2008.

The entrance to the park would be Emery Boulevard at Route 412. According to the plans, LVIP would extend Emery Boulevard to be a 1,700-foot cul-de-sac.

Heller said a conditional approval for the plans could come as early as Feb. 12.

LVIP, established in 1959, has built six industrial parks that are home to 370 companies with 17,000 employees. The parks generate more than $9.6 million in annual payroll and property tax in the Valley, according to LVIP.